Once In A Blue Moon
by CrayolaBox16
Summary: With Misa Hamai's birthday coming up, Len is determined to give his mom a wonderful present-through playing piano. He needs help though. And who better than to play the piece with him than Kahoko? Red here!


**Author's Note: Good evening, everyone! It's Red. Again. And this is #3 in my Birthday Fanfics list. This is another Kaho/Len fanfic dedicated to Suzune-chan16, who had her birthday a few months back. Belated happy birthday Suzune!**

**Disclaimer: Yuki Kure. Red. Two different people, so I confess that I don't own La Corda D'Oro~primo passo, or any of the characters. **

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><p><strong>Once in a Blue Moon<strong>

Kahoko shut her violin case, already hearing her stomach grumbling. She looked out the window and yawned. _No wonder I'm so tired… _she thought, her stomach grumbling once more. _And hungry too… it should be about 6 now…_

The sky outside was a dark blue, with patches of mauve and purple, and swirls of orange and vermilion. Kahoko yawned once more, and exited the practice room, bag slung on one shoulder, violin case held tightly in her right hand.

Walking down the corridor of the practice rooms, she expected to be alone. But hearing a piano from the second room from the exit, she thought twice. _That's odd… _she thought. _I guess I'm not the only one still practicing at a time like this. _

Before thinking twice, she peered into the room through the glass in the door, and gasped. She had expected Ryotaro, or one of the other piano majors, or even the accompanists to be sitting on the piano bench. She expected everyone else to be playing the piano…except him—Len Tsukimori. Kahoko listened closely at what he was playing, and she recognized it as Blue Moon, with its carefree, light, and bouncy tune.

Kahoko listened appreciatively, not noticing as Len stopped playing, having already spotted her inconspicuous position at the door. It was only when he had walked to the door when Kahoko noticed that she was found out.

She made a run for the door, but was unsuccessful. The door to Len's practice room opened quickly, and Len grabbed her by the arm. "Just what do you think you're doing?" he asked her, with his usual surly tone. Kahoko swallowed hard, trying to wriggle herself out of his grasp. He only tightened his hold on her. "Answer the question, Hino-san."

"I…I was, er…I was listening, okay? I mean…everybody knows your brilliant on the violin, but I'm guessing only a few people know you play piano too, huh?"

He shook his head, causing her to look strangely at him. "No one knows I play piano. No one knows…except you," Len said, a smile tugging at his lips.

A blush crept up Kahoko's cheeks, Len's smile suddenly sending a fuzzy feeling in the pit of her stomach. It wasn't strange or weird or in the least bit queer. It made her feel…special—with Len telling her of a secret talent only she knew…and smiling at her…

She mentally slapped herself from her reverie and looked at Len, whose smile stayed on his lips. "Tsukimori-kun? Are you alright?" Kahoko asked, with concern laced in her voice. She eyed him curiously, until he opened his mouth to speak.

"Hino-san—I have a favor to ask of you," he started, looking straight at Kahoko. She raised her eyebrows in question. "You know Blue Moon, right?" Kahoko nodded, still not understanding what this conversation would lead to. "Could you play it with me? I mean…it is a duet, and I would need someone to play it with me. Perhaps you could play the melody…?"

It took Kahoko a few seconds before she actually said anything. It was just surprising to have Len ask a favor from her, and to have him ask it so kindly…it was…surreal.

"Um…okay then. But…what is it for? I mean…I'm sure it's not for the concours, hai? So…what's the occasion?" Kahoko asked, out of curiosity.

"Well, it's my mother's birthday in a week. And I thought that since she was the one who taught me how to play piano, the best birthday gift I can give her is a performance using the piece she first taught me." Kahoko smiled instantly, having Len look at her questioningly. "Nani? Is anything wrong?"

Kahoko smiled even more widely. "Iie. No, nothing's wrong. I just think it's sweet that you'd do something like that for your mom. I never thought you had it in you, to do something as…loving as that." At her words, Len turned red immediately. He began spluttering out excuses, stammering and stuttering, until Kahoko put a hand on his shoulder. "I think it's nice. Your mom's lucky she has a son who loves her so much." She grinned at him and he smiled back. It was silent for a while, with them smiling at each other, until Kahoko broke the silence once more. "Um…Tsukimori-kun, when do we start practice?"

Len looked at the window, and saw that the sky had turned indigo with streaks of purple and plum, with little trace of the setting crimson sun. "It's too late now. We'll start practice tomorrow, and have it until next Wednesday. Then next Thursday, we'll go to my house for the party. Is that okay?"

Kahoko nodded and started walking towards the door, until she heard Len's voice. "Kahoko—thank you." She quickly whipped around and saw him smiling sheepishly at her, and her face went red again. kahoko smiled at him again, turned around and started walking towards the exit, trying her best to calm her breaths…and completely failing.

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><p><strong>Tsukimori home<strong>

**Thursday, 7:00 PM**

Kahoko stood near the door, beside Len, fidgeting. "Stop fidgeting, Hino-san. You're going to be fine." Len eyed Kahoko, observing that she was wearing a sapphire empire-cut cocktail dress, with a thick gold ribbon around her diaphragm area. With it, she wore two-inch gold heels, with gold and pearl earrings. "And you look really beautiful…so no worries," he said, smiling. His comment only made her blush a deep red. "Anyways, are you ready?" he asked her, taking her hand in his. "I guess it's about time for us to play our piece now."

Len led Kahoko to the middle of the hall, where the grand piano was, light bouncing off its black marble-like surface. They sat on the bench together, bringing attention to themselves. "Ready?" Len asked her. Kahoko nodded and smiled reassuringly at him. "Okay then. Thanks for doing this with me, Hino. It means a lot."

Without waiting for a reply, he turned to the piano and started playing the ostinato. After a while, Kahoko started playing, the melody this time. The piece continued for another minute, until it finally ended, with their audience applauding politely. Len stood up and hugged his mother, who was already near tears at this point. Misa hugged his son back, thanking him for such a wonderful present.

Kahoko stayed seated until Len approached her and pulled her to her feet, leading her away from the crowd, going to the balcony near the living room. They leaned against the railing, standing beside one another. "Thanks, Kahoko," Len repeated, turning to face her.

She blushed furiously, only because his face was only inches from hers. Kahoko looked away from him, praying that her face would return to its normal color. "You're welcome, Len," she muttered almost incoherently, still not facing him. He furrowed his eyebrows at her body language, as it was confusing him.

"Er…Hino? Are you okay?" he asked, holding her face, turning it slightly so she could face him. He noticed that she turned even redder at this sudden contact. She nodded at him, trying to reassure him of her condition. But she failed. "Something's telling me you're bothered by something," he said, staring at her eyes.

_Or someone,_ she thought. "It's nothing," she reassured him. Kahoko turned to leave, feeling very uncomfortable by the interaction she had with Len for the past week, seeing that she had this crush on him…and she just couldn't tell him. he grabbed her by the arm, and pulled her to him, again bringing her face tantalizing close to his. Without a second thought, he closed the gap between them for a brief second before he pulled away.

"I love you," he blurted out. But it wasn't a spur of the moment declaration or anything…he had been feeling for Kahoko since the start of the concours, and it had taken him this long before he could tell her. He just hoped his feelings were being reciprocated.

When she didn't reply, his heart almost stopped. He was so sure that she loved him as well. Len had already brushed a hand through his hair and was already out of the balcony when she called him back.

"Len!" she said, grabbing his arm and turning him to her, imitating his earlier actions. His face was already inches from hers once more when he heard her reply. "I love you too," she whispered. Kahoko smiled at him and Len grinned back, before his lips met with hers.

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading everyone! Comments? Questions? Clarifications? Violent reactions? All of 'em can be put in a review. ;)**


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